The BBC are looking to turn a british sci fi novel into a radio show. It has to be post WW2. It can't have already been done as a radio play.
Any suggestions, as I'd like to try and get the gig.
I thought of Childhood's End but it was done in 97.

Or there's Douglas Adams' Dirk 'Gently's Holistic Detective Agency',
Piers Anthony's Battle Circle Trilogy, (I believe he's English although he lives in America now)
Peter F. Hamilton's 'The Greg Mandel' series.
Iain Banks' 'A Song of Stone'
or there's James Herbert's '48' which is about an alternate ending to the second world War and one of his best I think Or there's David Gemmell's Post apocalyptic 'Wolf in Shadow'.

Thanks Lonesome. They don't want any Douglas Adams becuase they want serious. It also has to remade in a contempory setting. So outerspace ones don't fit the bill. I thought of 48 too, great novel but you couldn't make it contempory without ruining it.
I thought of Domain, which has the nuclear explosion in London and then the mutant rats wipe up the survivors.
I'd love to do the ITV four part Quatermass or Quatermass and the Pit but I think it has to be from a book.
I'll look up some of your suggestions. Thanks

I did think of another author, A little known Scot, Michael Elder who has turned out quite a few books over the years, I know of two of his books and they would both make excellent radio plays, he has a similar style to that of James Follett (and the BBC have done loads of Follett's books).
'Nowhere On Earth' is set a little in the future, a time when over population has forced the Governments of the world to take drastic actions to keep the peace. they use telepaths to hunt out any trouble makers.
His other book I know of is 'The Alien Earth' it takes place in three time zones, starting off with the the Roman occupation of Britain, then present day and finally the future. this would work particularly well as a three episode play, one time zone for each episode.
If you want a brief synopsis of either of these books let me know.

Any of John Christopher's disaster novels: "The Death of Grass" where a virus attacks the world's cereral crops; "The World In Winter" set during a new ice age, or "A Wrinkle in the Skin" where worldwide earthquakes devastate civilisation. I'd also nominate Christopher Priest's "The Space Machine" although it's set in the 1900s, or "Fugue for a Darkening Island" where Britain collaspes into civil war following an influx of refugees from a war-torn Africa. It was originally published in 1972 as a reaction to the racism at the time but it could be updated to take in concerns over Eastern European immigrants.

Kim Newman's "Anno Dracula" might be worth considering, or maybe his "Man from the Diogenes Club" stories featuring Richard Jeperson: a variant on the glamorous, flamboyant crime fighters of the 1970s. There's also "Teddy Bears Picnic" set in an alternate universe where Britia is fighting the Vietnam War, Russia still has its monarchy and America has become a communist state.

I'd also suggest Jeff Noon's "Automated Alice" where a bored Alice Liddell is transported to a surreal Manchester in the present day, and Robert Westall's "Urn Burial" set in the Pennies where a farm worker stumbles upon the aftermath of an alien war. The climax features alien spacecrafts ariving overhead during a sheepdog rally.

Another one I've just thought of is "Greybeard" by Brian Aldiss set in Britain after the human race has become sterile and is dying out.

I know this has nothing to do with the subject but one sci-fi novel that could be dramatised is "A Transatlantic Tunnel, Hurrah" set in a present day where the British Empire still exists and America is still part of the Empire. There are opulent super-trains, coal-brning air-liners and the descendant of George Washington is supervising the construction of a transatlantic tunnel. There's also "The Wonderful Visit" written by Wells in 1895 about an angel that falls to Earth in an English village. It was dramatised for television in 1950 with the young Kenneth Williams as the angel.

I came up with an idea in which suddenly everyone on Earth is shrunk down to the size of an inch from a ray from an orbiting space ship. Then after a few days of struggle in the now giant environment, in which millions die. The space ship descends and unleashes only slightly larger aliens that hunt and prey on the survivors.

I quite like your Idea and I've not heard of anything really similar, the nearest I can think of is 'The Incredible Shrinking Man' and a story where people start finding artifacts from an ancient civilisation but all the stuff they find is huge; chairs and tables are twice the size they need be, at the end of the story they discover the artifacts didn't belong to a race of giant, they themselves are the ones who are small, and their Government have been genetically altering the size of the people for years to cope with an over population problem, fitting more people into less space. I don't know the author's name or whether he's British.

I shall write a synopsis on the two Michael Elder books and get back soon.

I quite like your Idea and I've not heard of anything really similar, the nearest I can think of is 'The Incredible Shrinking Man' and a story where people start finding artifacts from an ancient civilisation but all the stuff they find is huge; chairs and tables are twice the size they need be, at the end of the story they discover the artifacts didn't belong to a race of giant, they themselves are the ones who are small, and their Government have been genetically altering the size of the people for years to cope with an over population problem, fitting more people into less space. I don't know the author's name or whether he's British.

I shall write a synopsis on the two Michael Elder books and get back soon.

Wasn't there "Of Men and Monsters" by William Tenn in which the Earth is invaded by giant aliens and humans are reduced to living and hiding underground like mice?

Probably but that isn't the same as shrinking us down to an inch, and then being hunted by slightly larger invaders. You have the double jeapordy of humanity struggling to survive in a giant world, in which insects and the such prey on us, as well as the aliens, plus the difficulty in feeding etc and the total breakdown of society. Humans unable to operate machines, loss of power and all that.

Here's a brief synopsis. I need to work it up, this is a first draft.

Downsized

A brief synopsis for a radio play by Laurence Wilson

Ben Wells, had not seen the dark globe that had appeared out in Earth’s orbit the night before. He had not seen the frantic news stories, had not seen the civil unrest witnessed here in England or elsewhere in the world. He’d been in a drunken stupor and besides his old TV had finally bust its guts, after years of transmitting mind numbing trash. He didn’t see or even feel the waves of energy that radiated from the object, washing over him and every other human being on the planet. He didn’t even feel himself shrink along with everyone else. It wasn’t until he awoke that he noticed something was terribly wrong. Lying in a great sea of material, he later realized was his bed clothes, Ben surveyed his surroundings and the terrible realization dawned upon him; he was now only one inch tall. It would be some time before he discovered that this was the fate of all people, and as he struggled to survive the now giant predators such as spiders and earwigs that inhabit his flat, living on the now massive crumbs on his long un-vacuumed carpet. Ben didn’t understand what had happened, but he knew one thing: that he would do his best to survive. Finding others is his first priority and he makes his way to his neighbours flat, finding others like him. Thrust into leading those he encounters within the block, Ben sets about a plan of action to survive by finding weapons to keep the predators at bay and find food. But on the 12th day of the shrinking, the dark globe out in space that emitted the shrinking rays, disgorges a horde of alien invaders upon the Earth. Invaders , which themselves are only 2 inches tall, and who plan to feast upon most of the survivors and enslave the rest.
Ben and his followers must outwit this new threat and somehow find away to defeat them.

From the book jacket
The year is 2173. Populations on every continent are expanding at alarming rates. Childbirth is thought of as an epidemic or plague. Society appears to be in the early hours of doomsday. Crushed like sardines into towering communal apartments, people are controlled by the Thought Police, whose main weapons are the Mediums -- telepathic individuals who can recognize and pinpoint any rebellious thought which might tend to diminish the power of the State.

From me.
Barclay is a normal guy, who works in traffic control. at the opening of the book he is waiting in the maternity ward for his wife Barbara to give birth, He's then told his wife and new-born daughter have died, shocked and stunned he is taken to view his wife's body and say his farewells.
On returning home he receives a vid-phone message from Barbara saying she's alright, but then the message is cut off abruptly.
Deciding something fishy is going on, he tries returning to the hospital but his thoughts have betrayed him and the Thought Police are coming, he heads for the roof only to find one of the Medium's Skimmers (a small helicopter) waiting, but the hooded figure of telepath is frozen, incapacitated for some reason.
Barclay steals the skimmer and lands at the hospital, cons his way in and finds his wife, she tells him it's all a pack of lies their daughter isn't dead and she hasn't a clue what's going on either. Then the Police rush in and Barclay is captured after a brief chase in which he brakes his ankle.
Imprisoned without a trial and without knowing what the hell's going on Barclay falls into the routine of prison life, He is there for 20 months, when one day he is summoned to an office where a Chief Inspector Roacker tells him his wife and daughter are doing fine other than a brief but minor problem his daughter suffered when she was a few hours old, he is also told his daughter Susan is a strong telepath and Barbara carries the telepathic gene but Barclay does not, so he is of no use to the State and it would be less trouble for all if he stayed where he is, in prison.
Barclay realises Susan will one day be used by the State as one of the dreaded, hooded Mediums. The Mediums are blinded to cut out as much external interference as possible and increase the telepathic ability.
Barclay is put into a work party and sent to Glencoe to level the ground for new housing. there he meets a fellow prisoner Carter who was the second in command of the rebels before he was captured whilst trying to save the life of his leader Cornelius Gunn.
Over a period of 18 months Carter teaches Barclay how to shield his mind from the Thought Police by dividing his mind into two separate parts, one that the Mediums were allowed to read and the other were his true thoughts could be kept secret. Barclay, Carter and a semi moronic fellow called Albert form an alliance and often elude the guards and hide and plan in an old abandoned shepherds hut.
One day Carter a trained surgeon captures a Medium with intention of finding out what makes them tick and even dissecting 'it' if necessary, but when the Medium's hood and cloak are removed, instead of finding the hideous witch-like creature they expect they unveil a beautiful but blind girl of about 20 years. and of course they can't carry out their plans.
After Carter removes the cataracts from the Mediums eyes and after she learns the truth of what's going on, Diana the Medium decides not to betray them.
2 months later a new Medium turns up to replace the still missing Diana and this Medium is more powerful that anyone has known before, 'it' heads straight for the shepherd's hut, Thought Police following close behind.
By the time Barclay reaches the hut Albert is dead and Carter and Diana are gone or captured and the New Medium is waiting there for him, picking up a knife he turns to kill it when it cries "Don't Daddy Please" and of course it's his blind daughter Susan, under the hood, 5 years old now.
Susan explains how she had picked her fathers thoughts out and realised she was working on the wrong side, She was unable to protect Albert but managed to lead the Police away from Carter and Diana, allowing them to escape.
Susan is the strongest Medium the Government has, in fact too strong. The Millions of minds in the cities are a constant cacophonous assault on Susan's brain and it was slowly killing her, that's why they sent her to work in the relative peace and quiet of the prison camp.
Barclay shows her how to shield her mind and they make their escape in her Skimmer, abandoning the Skimmer outside the city. they enter on foot but it's soon obvious the mind shield trick isn't good enough for Susan and the millions of thoughts come crashing back in. And before you know it Police Skimmers are hovering over head again and Barclay's plans to rescue Barbara have failed.
Back in custody and Susan drugged up to the eyeballs, Barclay meets Chief Inspector Roacker again, Roacker explains the over-population problem facing the world and how there is Nowhere On Earth left for man to go, Barclay agrees he should be fighting with the State and not against it.
Barclay asks about the fit that Susan had when they entered the city and it turns out Susan was not the only Medium to be incapacitated, all the higher Mediums were crippled at the same time and this is the third time this has happened, Barclay asks for the dates of the other fits and works out the fits are evenly spaced with a gap of 1 year and 252 days, from this he is able to deduce that a powerful mind must be sending out thought waves every 1 year and 252 days and nothing on Earth was powerful enough so it must come from outside the Earth, A Planet with an orbit of 1 year 252 days. they realize they have that length of time before the next wave to prepare.
The message the Alien being is sending is too strong for the higher Mediums and not strong enough for the lesser Mediums, so the only way they can reduce the higher Mediums is by restoring their sight. it works and the next message tells them of suitable planets for man to live and the book ends with the planning of a huge space fleet.

I have listened to a lot of BBC radio plays and I feel this story is typical of the sort of book the BBC used to do. the book works well as a stand-alone story, although it is (Book One) of the 'Barclay' series, so if you chose it and if it's successful there's more where that came from.

I have listened to a lot of BBC radio plays and I feel this story is typical of the sort of book the BBC used to do. the book works well as a stand-alone story, although it is (Book One) of the 'Barclay' series, so if you chose it and if it's successful there's more where that came from.

Ah yes yoy say it was you at the bottom/ I've read it now sounds fantastic but too futuristic. It has to be a story that can be set now. I did mention that. I'd love to read the book though.

Just read your opening synopsis to your story Loz, it sounds intriguing, I want more. it has a 1950/60s feel to it, I suppose that's because of the old classic 'The Incredible Shrinking Man' and also a bit of 'The Day of the Triffids' as it opens with a disaster that effects the whole Human race.
When does your entry have to be submitted by?
Tell your characters to watch out for the Hrgigers at the height of only one inch they could be in real trouble.

Just read your opening synopsis to your story Loz, it sounds intriguing, I want more. it has a 1950/60s feel to it, I suppose that's because of the old classic 'The Incredible Shrinking Man' and also a bit of 'The Day of the Triffids' as it opens with a disaster that effects the whole Human race.When does your entry have to be submitted by?Tell your characters to watch out for the Hrgigers at the height of only one inch they could be in real trouble.

Ha ha. Didn't your Martians clean up all the hrgiegers? Thanks for the info. I'll post more on it as I develop it. It does have a 50's/60's feel. And a Day of the Triffids feel and even a Twighlite Zone feel.

I think your best bet is to continue developing your own story.
Although Sci/Fi is regarded as a British invention, America seems to have taken over the genre, The only Brit author I can think of that fits all your criteria is J G. Ballard but all his stories are very negative with depressing endings or no endings at all, which is worse and you are left saying"Yes, OK, then what happened??". So unless anyone else can suggest an author or title I should work on your own. and please keep us informed.

I was toying with some James Herbert and Stephen King stories though. They have written Science Fiction. I know you mentioned 48 but Domain, struck me as a good one to do, as did, The Fog, Portent,
and Tommy Knockers.
In Herbert's case, the pornographic material. Would have to be cut.

Stephen King's out because he's an American and I can't see Herbert's stuff working well on the radio, he's a very visual writer, although having said that the BBC did a good job of his 'The Magic Cottage'.

Every time I think of a British Sci/Fi Author they turn out to be unsuitable, usually because they do Comedy Sci/Fi, like Douglas Adams, Jasper Fforde, Rob Grant & Doug Naylor or Terry Pratchett, it almost as if we are embarrassed to take the subject seriously any more, where have all the H.G. Wells' gone?.

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